Chapter 16

Hao Ren, with his eyes fixed on his nose, his nose on his mouth, and his mouth on his heart, sat motionless like a bell on the chair, his hands resting on his knees, and his expression particularly solemn—he realized that he was facing a situation beyond human comprehension. If he wanted to enjoy the rest of his life smoothly, the wisest choice was to put aside his usual lazy and frivolous attitude and listen carefully to the woman who claimed to be a god.

"How does it feel to experience the creation of the world?" Raven 12345 glanced at Hao Ren with a smile at the corner of her eyes.

Hao Ren observed Raven 12345's expression, confirming that the woman was indeed approachable, and then grinned awkwardly, "If I ask you if this is an illusion, will you casually kill me?"

"No, because many people have asked you this question, and I'm not at all surprised," Raven 12345 shrugged, "I will take you to see more things until you fully understand and believe what I tell you, but not now. For now, you just need to take what I say seriously, and then we can talk about work."

Hao Ren raised his hand to signal her to pause, as he needed time to sort out what had happened.

He thought the strange events he had experienced were just on Earth, but the woman in front of him claimed to come from... another universe? Not Earth, not another planet, not another solar system, but another universe! She claimed to come from an empire that ruled the multiverse and worked at an organization called the Temporal Administration, responsible for managing the order of this universe. Now, this woman who called herself a god said she needed an agent to handle the trivial matters on Earth, and she had chosen Hao Ren...

That was the whole story, not hard to understand in words, but quite challenging to the three views of life.

Hao Ren sneakily glanced at Raven 12345, who clearly noticed but did not comment. Taking this opportunity, Hao Ren began to compare the silver-haired woman in front of him with his impression of gods and immortals, adding wings behind her or a halo above her head... but he gave up after a while, knowing it was a waste of time. From the moment he met the werewolf who was afraid of cats, he should have thrown all the legends on Earth down the drain.

"Is there really another universe?" Hao Ren looked at Raven 12345 hesitantly, "I've read about parallel universes in books, is this the theory?"

"It's much more complicated than that. The true structure of the macrocosm is far more complex than human imagination," Raven 12345 pursed her lips, seemingly reluctant to explain, "You won't be exposed to things from other worlds for now; that's something for when you become a regular employee or have a special mission. For now, your main task is to manage your own little patch of land..."

"Why me?" Hao Ren couldn't help but interrupt, feeling he needed to assert some control, even if he couldn't fight back, he had to try to speak firmly, "You didn't ask for my consent, did you?"

"Oh, right, I forgot about that," Raven 12345 suddenly slapped her forehead, making Hao Ren involuntarily break out in a cold sweat, "The principle of voluntary work, yes, there is such a principle... I always assumed you would agree. So, you don't want to?"

Hao Ren was taken aback, not expecting such lenient conditions. This was different from the mysterious force he had imagined, where refusing cooperation would mean being killed. However, after Raven 12345 offered such lenient terms, he became hesitant: what should he do? Really refuse? It felt a bit of a waste... as if his new and exciting life was about to be stillborn.

"What if I don't agree?"

"You will have the memories of the past two days erased, and I will take the werewolf away. Don't worry, neither you nor the werewolf will be harmed. You will just have no further connection with these things you shouldn't be involved with. Ordinary people have ordinary lives, and throughout history, those who encountered extraordinary things as ordinary people have always met tragic ends," Raven 12345 explained calmly, "I will find another agent. There are many people on Earth, and if necessary, I can apply for an intern to assist."

Hao Ren felt a tightening in his heart, a vague and indescribable feeling spreading. Then he shook his head, "What if I agree? What exactly do you want me to do? Let's get this straight, I won't do anything immoral. I'm a good person."

Raven 12345's lips curled slightly, "Don't be so nervous. You will be working for the divine race. In other divine systems, this position is even called 'Holy Son' or 'Proxy,' but we have a special system, so we don't call it that. What are you worried about? We won't make you do anything bad. Your main tasks are two: first, to receive some guests, just like you did before, but these guests will be special. They need help, a place to stay, and someone to guide them—so you will receive and take care of them to prevent them from causing harm to the human world. Second, to help me with other tasks."

Hao Ren: "..." He instinctively felt that the second task was the key!

"Are the guests you mentioned like Lili?" Hao Ren tried to understand more, though it wouldn't give him the upper hand, it would at least prevent him from being deceived, "Are they 'abnormals'? Can I ask why you do this? Just to prevent them from disrupting the human world?"

"The reasons are actually quite complex," Raven 12345 was patient, "Any civilization, unless it encounters a catastrophic disaster or a serious situation that requires divine intervention, has the right to evolve naturally without interference. I know about your human myths, but the true gods are different from your legends—we create, manage, and destroy worlds, but all of this follows strict rules. No one can interfere with or disrupt the activities of mortals at will. We made many mistakes in this area before we became gods, so now it's a serious issue. Your world is the same: human civilization should evolve naturally without external interference. It's fine if you encounter some setbacks in your development, but if a third party tries to artificially distort the human evolutionary process, I have an obligation to help you resist it. As for your task... it's to clean up the 'aftermath.'"

Hao Ren struggled to understand Raven 12345's words, feeling he was grasping something: "You said a 'third party' is trying to interfere with the human process? Lili... and the guests I will receive in the future are related to this interference?"

"Don't think too much about it. That happened a long time ago. The biggest wave of impact has already been handled by me. You humans are now safe, and as long as you don't seek your own destruction, you can live until you die," Raven 12345 looked into Hao Ren's eyes, "As for the guests you will receive... they are indeed related to a major event, but that's a secret for now. Don't ask too many questions. So, are you willing to do this? Although it's just helping the Temporal Administration with some cleanup work, it's a job that many people in many worlds envy. It's like being a temporary employee of a state-owned enterprise..."

Hao Ren: "..." You make it sound so tempting, but I'm even more hesitant to agree!

Raven 12345 laughed heartily, completely unconcerned.

Hao Ren lowered his head, trying hard to think about this question that could change his life.

He still couldn't fully trust the woman in front of him and couldn't understand what the multiverse, gods, and macrocosm were like, as Raven 12345 said, he could only assume everything was true for now and think about what he should do.

If he nodded now, he would embark on a path completely different from his past, as Raven 12345 put it, "working for a god." Regardless of whether the silver-haired woman was telling the truth, whether there were traps, or whether the future was smooth or perilous, Hao Ren would face a new, unimaginable life. His fate would change, for better or worse.

If he shook his head now, he would only lose the memories of the past two days, forget things that ordinary people shouldn't be involved with, and return to being a small landlord or find a proper job to muddle through life, find a wife who wasn't deeply in love but could get along, and live out his life like this.

No need to choose.

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